Background...

Carnage has escaped from the Ravencroft institute with the ability to regenerate
his symbiote from his mutated bloodstream. Along the way he has acquired several
followers: Shriek, Doppelganger, Demogoblin, and Carrion II.
They have begun a massive killing spree that has left New York in absolute
terror. To make matters worse, Shriek has the ability to transfer her thoughts
and emotions to anyone nearby, causing riots.

Spider-Man has recruited his own army to combat the chaos: Venom (currently
a captive of Carnage), Cloak and Dagger (whose was killed by Shriek),
Firestar, Morbius, Captain America, Iron Fist, and Deathlok.

Spidey and his crew have apparently fought their way out of their predicament
as they are now no longer surrounded by crazed New Yorkers (continuity glitch
here). In the midst of the chaos, a television reporter gets a curt statement
from Captain America on the situation. She is then instructed to get out of the
warzone.

In Liz Osborn's apartment, the Parker and Osborn family watch the
televised chaos on the television. Richard Parker, Peter's father goes on a
rant
about the decline of morality in the world, citing this an his proof. Mary
Jane stands up to him and reminds him that the heroes almost calmed down the
crowd until Shriek drove them insane again. Aunt May watches the
proceedings with an approving eye. MJ states that the heroes will prevail, and
that she doesn't want to hear another negative thought from Richard.

In the Statue of Liberty, Carnage continues to torture Venom. Venom begs for
his life against his offspring. Carnage laughs at him and grabs Mr.
Fantastic's sonic weapon that he acquired along the way and fires. Instead of
a sonic beam, part of the symbiote erupts from the barrel. This frees Venom
from his chains, allowing him to knock Carnage aside. This clears a path for
Venom to finally escape from his captor. Carnage is angry that he was so easily
tricked.

At the Holy Ghost Church, Cloak is begging for some Divine intervention. He
can't understand the forces that drew him back to the church or what he's
feeling at the moment. He is beside himself worrying that people are dying
while he stays on the sideline dealing with this emotional turmoil.

Shriek and her "children" (Doppelganger, Demogoblin, and Carrion II) watch
Captain America and the remaining heroes fight the riots that she instigated.
She thinks out loud that they're fighting for an illusion. She states that as a
child, she was frequently abused by "trusted people"; the heroes never saved her.

At the street level, Iron Fist employs a meditative technique he learned in
K'un L'unn to project a wave of calmness over the crowd. It works for a very
brief time, but the sheer numbers cause him to loose concentration. He is saved
by Spider-Man when the crowd rushes him. When asked, Iron Fist explains to
Spider-Man what he did. Spider-Man follows up with "can you teach me that?".
Iron Fist responds "Yes, in eight to ten years". This was not what he wanted to
hear and begins to punch a chimney to vent his frustrations. He then remembers
something that Aunt May had told him and stumbles on the solution.

On another rooftop, Shriek has become bored with watching the rioting and
prepares to leave. At this point Carnage appears and is angry that she's
starting mayhem without permission and begins to throw her around with the
symbiote's tendrils. The Doppelganger, who has become inexplicably protective
of Shriek, attacks Carnage. Carnage drops Shriek and easily defeats him, kicking
him off the roof. He is seen hitting the street, leaving an appropriate crater
in the ground.

At this point, "Team Spidey" appears and informs Carnage that they've cleared
the streets of all innocent bystanders while they were having a family squabble.
Carnage and Shriek put aside their differences and descend to the street to
have a final showdown with the heroes.

Before the next battle begins, Cloak appears and warns Carnage that his
darkness will not spread any further. And then from within his cape, Dagger
emerges.

In General...

Finally a well-written issue. The one minor continuity glitch aside, this
chapter actually played a vital role to the overall story.

The return of Dagger was expected, but it's done correctly without any
unnecessary delays.

Overall Rating...

3 webs. I'm encouraged to read the next chapter instead of dreading it. With
only two chapters remaining, it's about time they started to resolve all the
plot lines they've started.

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